Chelsea's chief executive Ron Gourlay has said that the talents of Juan Mata, Eden Hazard and Oscar can help improve the image of the club.

In recent years Chelsea have had to contend with a series of high-profile incidents, culminating in the recent furore over racial allegations.

And, although the spirit shown in last season's Champions League victory was respected, it was suggested by some that their achievement was at the cost of more positive sides, like semi-final opponents Barcelona.

Since then, though, Chelsea have demonstrated some expansive football of their own and earned plaudits for it, with Mata, Hazard and Oscar particularly impressing.

"That's where we want to be," Gourlay said. "I think people like the way they are seeing Chelsea play football now, and that's very important because it portrays itself as the image of the club. We are in a very, very strong place.

"We have to keep focused on the football games and really get to a point where the football does our talking for us. There are things that have happened that damaged the image. There are bullet prints in our armour."